Design and Preliminary Implementation of an Integrated Care Flowchart for Korean-Western Medical Collaboration in Bucheon Primary Care

Article information

J Korean Med. 2025;46(2):75-83

Publication date (electronic) : 2025 June 1

doi : https://doi.org/10.13048/jkm.25019

Hanbit Jin ¹^,^§

, Beumseuk Kim ²^,^§

, Eunji Ahn ¹

, Sungae Kim ³

, Minkyung Kim ²

, Gyuseok Cho ³^,

, Dongsu Kim ¹^,

¹Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Korean Medicine, Dongshin University

²Jungdong Korean Medicine Clinic

³Bucheon Health Welfare Social Cooperative, Bucheon Citizen’s Medical Clinic

Correspondence to: Dongsu Kim, Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Korean Medicine, Dongshin University, 67, Dongsindae-gil, Naju-si, Jeollanam-do, Republic of Korea, Tel: +82-61-330-3258, Fax: +82-61-330-3519, E-mail: dskim20@dsu.ac.kr

^§

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Received 2025 April 10; Revised 2025 May 15; Accepted 2025 May 22.

Abstract

Objectives

Integrated care began as a response to the growing ageing population. The main professionals in charge of medical care are doctors and Korean medicine doctors. However, interprofessional collaboration has been scarcely explored.

Methods

A collaborative care flowchart tailored for primary care settings was developed through expert consultations with medical staff from an A Medical Home Care Center and a B Korean Medicine Home Care Center. After pilot implementation of the flowchart, electronic medical records (EMRs) of patients receiving care were retrospectively collected and analyzed from May to December 2024.

Results

The primary function of Korean medicine doctors was to manage pain, and they collaborated with medical professionals to prescribe medication and diagnose patients. Moreover, while the subjects expressed satisfaction with the collaborative care process, they expressed dissatisfaction regarding the infrequency of visits. Although the pilot implementation of the collaborative care model was successful, a critical limitation was the lack of systemic support.

Conclusions

This study is significant as it represents the first attempt to develop a primary care-based collaborative care flowchart, and it can be utilized as fundamental data in future research. In the future, it will be important to identify the comprehensive role of Korean medicine doctors and to continue discussions with other professionals and policymakers. To expand and institutionalize collaborative care, policy-level support and dedicated legal frameworks are needed.

Keywords: Integrated care; Collaborative care; Flowchart development; Pilot implementation; Retrospective chart review

Fig. 1

Primary Care-based Collaborative Care Flowchart in Bucheon City

KM; Korean medicine, WM; Western medicine

Fig. 2

Reasons for Assigning Subjects and Collaborative Care

KM; Korean medicine, WM; Western medicine

Table 1

General Characteristics of the Subjects

Table 2

Results of the Satisfaction Survey

References

1. Kang H.. 2022. Research to support the establishment of a mid- to long-term strategy for integrated community care Ministry of Health and Welfare; https://repository.kihasa.re.kr/handle/201002/40821.

2. Sung S.-H., Baik Y.-S., Han J.-E., Lee E.-J., Kim J., Park M., Lee J.-Y., Park J.-K., Park J.-Y., Lee E.. 2022;Traditional Korean Medicine Home Care for the Older Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic in South Korea. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19(1):493. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010493.

3. Wi S., Jeon Y., Hong M., Choi J.. 2024;Evaluation of the effects and improvement measures of the pilot project for visiting care by Korean medicine doctors. Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service

4. Choi J., Yu A.. 2022. Research on the development of a home-visit medical care model to promote integrated community care National Health Insurance Service Health Insurance Research Institute.

5. Act on Supporting the Integration of Local Care, Including Medical and Nursing Care Retrieved July 8, 2024, from https://www.law.go.kr/lsInfoP.do?lsiSeq=261447&viewCls=lsRvsDocInfoR#.

6. Ministry of Health and Welfare. 2025. Guide to the Korean medicine Long-Term Care Home Healthcare Center Ministry of Health and Welfare; https://nikom.or.kr/.

7. Oh Y., An D.. 2020. The role of doctors in integrated community care Medical Policy Research Institute; https://rihp.re.kr.

8. Han K.-I., Shin S.-H., Lim G.-M., Jung-han L., YounSeok K.. 2018;Reviewing Research of Eastern-Western Integrative Medicine Studies in Korea. Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation 28(1):53–60.

9. Sung K. H., Jung-Sik W.. 2022;The Empirical Analysis on Treatment Behavior of the Western-Korean Collaborative Medical Practices. The Society of Convergence Knowledge Transactions 10(2):51–60. https://doi.org/10.22716/sckt.2022.10.2.015.

10. Mihee C., Kim C.-O., Shin Y., Choi B., Eunhee C., Lee H., Lee J., Jang S.. 2024;Explorative Study of Patient Satisfaction and Service Quality for Home-Based Primary Care. Journal of the Korean Gerontological Society 44(4):509–521. https://doi.org/10.31888/JKGS.2024.44.4.509.

11. Lee J. H., Choi Y.-J., Volk R. J., Kim S. Y., Kim Y. S., Park H. K., Jeon T.-H., Hong S. K., Spann S. J.. 2007;Defining the concept of primary care in South Korea using a Delphi method. Family Medicine 39(6):425–431.

12. Lee J., Kim S.-J.. 2022;Case Study on Integrated Community Care for the Elderly (Focused on Bucheon City). Journal of Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society 23(9):276–286. https://doi.org/10.5762/KAIS.2022.23.9.276.

Article information Continued

Fig. 1

Primary Care-based Collaborative Care Flowchart in Bucheon City

KM; Korean medicine, WM; Western medicine

Fig. 2

Reasons for Assigning Subjects and Collaborative Care

KM; Korean medicine, WM; Western medicine

Table 1

General Characteristics of the Subjects

	Total	Collaborative care	WM alone	KM alone

	n(%) or M±SD
Total	75(100%)	18(24%)	33(44%)	24(32%)

Age (year)	79.5±7.9	81.9±8.4	77.7±7.5	80.1±7.7

Gender
Male	23(100%)	3(13.0%)	14(60.9%)	6(26.1%)
Female	52(100%)	15(28.8%)	19(36.5%)	18(34.6%)

Household type
Living alone	51(100%)	14(27.5%)	22(43.1%)	15(29.4%)
Other	24(100%)	4(16.7%)	11(45.8%)	9(37.5%)

Long-term care
No	64(100%)	17(26.6%)	30(46.9%)	17(26.6%)
Yes	11(100%)	1(9.1%)	3(27.3%)	7(63.6%)

Registered disability
No	62(100%)	15(24.2%)	29(46.8%)	18(29.0%)
Yes	13(100%)	3(23.1%)	4(30.8%)	6(46.2%)

KM; Korean medicine, WM; Western medicine

Table 2

Results of the Satisfaction Survey

Question (n=16)	Satisfaction

	M±SD
Was the quality of the home visit good?	88.8±14
Did you get the care you wanted?	87.5±13.9
Did this home visit meet your needs?	87.5±13.9
Would you recommend this home visit to someone else?	91.3±12.2
Are you satisfied with the amount (number of times) of home visits you receive?	61.3±28.7
Did this home visit help you solve your problem?	81.3±19.3
Would you like to receive this home visit in the future if necessary?	91.3±15.8
Are you generally satisfied with the house calls you have received?	88.8±14

Total	84.7±19.6